Chicken feeding trough



March 1951 w.'v. NISKALA ETAL CHICKEN FEEDING TROUGH Filed Nov. 14, 1949 S m m M mm miwh m a V r .s .1 m MU 1 1 m M M M mm 5. ww m 2 w, W. 8 J I w 0 n \m b M w w & awv I Patented Mar. 13, 1951 CHICKEN FEEDING TROUGH Wilho V. Niskala, Minneapolis, Minn., and George E. Niskala, Tooele, Utah Application November 14, 1949, Serial No. 127,060

1 Claim.

The present invention relates to certain new and useful improvements in trough constructions and has more particular reference to one which is expressly designed and made to hold feed and to facilitate the act of chickens eating the feed therefrom.

The object of the invention is to provide a simple, practical, economical and efficient trough construction in which manufacturers and users will find their anticipated needs and requirements fully met, contained and effectively available.

Another object of the invention is to provide a I substantially supported relatively shallow trough which has a roof over the top of the trough to protect the feed in the trough, to a limited extent, from rain, snow and high winds.

More specifically, novelty is predicated upon a relatively shallow trough havin vertical end panels at opposite ends rising well above the level of the open top of the trough and serving as supports for the aforementioned roof, the latter being made up of one fixed member and one relatively movable member, the two members coacting in providing a substantially inverted V-shaped roof.

Then, too, novelty has to do with the aforementioned V-roof wherein the movable member is, hinged to the fixed member and serves to afiord ready access to the trough for filling same,

handily and conveniently, with feed.

In addition to the above, it is an object of the invention to so proportion and arrange the parts which go to make up the trough on the one hand and the roof on the other that the existing spaces between the side walls of the trough and roof members are sufficiently large to allow the chickens to have ready access to the feed in the trough but are, at the same time, too small to allow the chickens to climb bodily into the trough.

Finally, it is an objective to provide a centralized vertically disposed partition which functions to divide the trough into separate compartments for the retention of different kinds of chicken feed.

Other objects and advantages will become more readily apparent from the following description and the accompanying illustrative drawings.

In the accompanying sheet of drawings, wherein like numerals are employed to designate like parts throughout the views:

Figure 1 is a perspective view of a chicken feeding trough constructed in accordance with the principles of the present invention;

Figures 2 and 3 are enlarged vertical cross sections taken on the planes of the lines 2-2 and 3-3 respectively of Figure 1, looking in the direction of the arrows.

Referring now to the drawings by distinguishing reference numerals and accompanying lead lines, the trough, which is horizontally elongated and comparatively shallow, is denoted by the numeral 6 and includes a horizontal central bottom wall 8 and opposite upwardly and outwardly diverging side walls In and I2 respectively, the latter attached along their lower edges to the longitudinal edge portions of said bottom in any suitable manner (not detailed). The end portions of the trough are closed in by relatively wide vertical end walls l4 and [6 which are duplicates of one another and which have their upper ends extending well above the open top of the trough and of general V-shaped form. Fastened to the exterior surfaces of the vertical end walls [4 and [6 are horizontal foot-pieces I8 and 20.

These are secured so that their lower edges are flush with the lower edges of the end walls while the end portions 22-22 extend beyond the vertical edges of said end walls and coact with the latter in providing substantial supports for the overall trough construction.

The inverted V-roof in its elevated position above the trough provides a satisfactory weather shed and it will be noticed, in this connection, that the roof members are denoted by the numerals 24 and 26 respectively. The board which goes to make up member 26 is narrower than the board which constitutes member 24, and is fixed on the coacting inclined upper edges of the respective vertical end walls i4 and IS. The uppermost edge portion thereof is beveled as at 28 and the inner beveled edge portion of the roof member 24 rests thereon and the two members are connected together by the leaves 30 and 32 respectively of the longitudinally spaced leaf hinges. The roof members 24 and 26 together cover a greater span than the uppermost or top portion of the trough. Consequently, these members 24 and 26 overhang the upper edges of the diverging trough walls Ill and I2. In addition, roof member 24 provides a hinged cover and when swung open affords unobstructed access to the trough making it possible to conveniently load the trough with chicken feed.

In Figure 3 it will be seen that the upper halfportion 34 of the central vertically disposed divider or partition is as wide as the end walls i4 and I6 and has its upper end of corresponding V-shaped construction. The lower apron portion, the part denoted at 36, is semi-octagonal in 3 form and this fits down into the trough and has its edges contacting the surfaces of the trough walls 8, i and [2 respectively. At the juncture of the upper and lower half -portions of said partition notches are provided, as at 38 and 40, and these hook over the upper edge portions of the adjacent or corresponding walls l0 and I2 respectively. The partition divides the trough into two sections which may be independently used for difierent kinds of feed.

By having the roof in canopy-like fashion above the open trough, th roof has the additional function of a roost for chickens.

As previously pointed out, the spaces existing between the overhanging eaves of the roof and uppermost edges of walls l0 and I2 ar such that they satisfactorily accommodate the necks and heads of chickens giving free access to the feed in the trough compartments and are yet small enough to prevent the chickens from actually getting into the feed in the trough.

Not only is the trough simple, practical and economical from the standpoint of manufacture and sale, it is ideal in that it keeps the feed clean and reduces expensive wastage to a minimum.

It is thought that persons skilled in the art to which the invention relates will be able to obtain a clear understanding of the invention after considering the description in connection with the drawings. Therefore, a more lengthy description is regarded as unnecessary.

Minor changes in the shape, size and arrangement of details coming within the field of invention claimed may be resorted to in actual practice, if desired.

Having described the invention, what is claimed aslnew is:

A chicken feeder of the class shown and describedcomprising a horizontally elongated open top trough embodying a flat horizontal bottom wall and longitudinal opposed upwardly and outwardly inclined side walls attached to said bottom wall, vertical end walls attached to and closing opposite ends of said trough, said end walls being of widths greater than the cross section of the trough, said end walls extending to vertical planes well above the plane of the open upper portion of the trough and the upper ends of said vertical walls being of inverted V-shaped configuration, a horizontally disposed outwardly and downwardly inclined board spanning the space between said vertical end walls and having its end portions attached to coacting upper end portions of said end walls, a second horizontally disposed board spannin the space between said vertical end walls and having its end portions resting on but not attached to th underlying edge portions of said vertical end walls, one longitudinal edge being hingedly connected to the corresponding REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 1,507,795 Rockey -i Sept. 9, 1924 1,638,917 Badenhop June 28, 1927 1,881,023 Hoeft Oct. 4, 1932 2,090,414 Haapalasko Aug. 17, 1937 2,140,856 Sentz Dec. 20, 1938 

